Q2 to See Major Crypto Rollouts in Japan

Since the end of March, a number of Japanese crypto exchanges backed by major firms have announced their launch schedules for service in succession. Multiple exchanges are set to become operational from April to June.

DeCurret, a cryptocurrency exchange that registered with the FSA on March 25 (on the same day Rakuten Wallet was registered), will begin offering a crypto trading service on April 16. Nineteen major Japanese corporations including East Japan Railway Company (JR East), the general trading company ITOCHU Corporation, the advertising agency DENTSU, and the finance giant MUFG Bank have all invested in DeCurret.

It has also been reported that JR East is considering collaborating with DeCurret to introduce cryptocurrency as a way to charge SUICA IC cards, which accept money for boarding tickets that can also be used as digital money.

Rakuten Wallet, the cryptocurrency exchange under the umbrella of the major e-commerce and internet service firm Rakuten Inc, has announced it will launch its cryptocurrency service in Japan in June.

The major FX and securities trading firm Money Partner Group is also expected to establish a wholly owned subsidiary that primarily operates as a cryptocurrency operator in May. TaoTao, Inc., a cryptocurrency exchange with investment from Yahoo Japan Corporation is expected to launch in May too.

While crypto exchange launches are not in themselves major news, the fact that these startups are backed by such big name players from the 'traditional' Japanese corporate sector is significant, given their massive existing user bases.

With cryptocurrencies likely to be a hot topic on the agenda of the G20 Osaka Summit, meetings to watch for potential announcements are the Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting - scheduled for the weekend of June 8th and 9th, and the Ministerial Meeting on Trade and the Digital Economy which will run over the same weekend.

In addition to the 20 members of the group, including representatives from the United States, China, the European Union (EU), and the United Kingdom, international institutions, including the United Nations (UN), International Monetary Fund (IMF), and World Bank, will also be represented at the summit.

At the previous G20 Summit held in Buenos Aires in November 2018, announcements were made about developing international standards for money laundering and tax avoidance involving the use of cryptocurrencies by 2020. Given the looming deadline, hopes are high that something concrete will come out of the Osaka Summit, as although cryptocurrencies have been included on the G20 agenda several times in the past, discussions are still ongoing and no clear conclusions have been reached.

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